Spirit Airlines is just like Frontier Airlines, is a budget friendly airline that is known for their extremely low base rates with a la carte charges for any additions. The Spirit Airlines Free Spirit is their loyalty program that offers great perks and benefits. The airline mainly operates within the United States, but also has routes to destinations in Latin America and the Caribbean.
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Continue reading to see if this is the frequent flyer program for you!
Free Spirit Quick Facts
| Domestic Hubs | Atlantic City, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Detroit, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando |
| Personal Credit Cards | Free Spirit Travel Mastercard Free Spirit Travel More World Elite Mastercard |
| Business Credit Cards | N/A |
| Redemption Options | Award flights, magazines, online games |
| Value Per Point | $0.005 |
Free Spirit Elite Status
Free Spirit has three levels of status:
| STATUS | REQUIREMENTS |
| Free Spirit | No requirements |
| Silver | 2,000 SQPs |
| VIP | 5,000 SQPs |
Free Spirit Silver members can receive up to 8x pints on fares and 16x points on Spirit extras, with the addition of:
- Ability to host a points pool
- Redemption fee waiver
- Free seat selection at check-in (excluding exit rows and Big Front Seats)
- Free exit row seat selection (3 hours before departure)
- Free same-day standby
- Shortcut boarding
- Dedicated guest care phone number
On the other hand, Free Spirit Gold members enjoy 10x points on fares, 12x points on Spirit extras, all Silver-level perks, as well as:
- Free seat selection at booking
- Free full-sized carry-on bag
- First checked bag free
- Free snack and drink on board
- Free modification to your itinerary once online (up to 24 hours before departure)
The ability to pool points is a new feature of the revamped Free Spirit program. This perk allows you to combine Free Spirit points with up to eight family members and friends, so you can earn award flights faster.
Earning Free Spirit Points
As mentioned above, you can earn points based on the dollars that you spend, rather than the miles you fly, so you will receive miles on every Spirit Airlines purchase.
| FREE SPIRIT | SILVER | GOLD |
| 6x points on fares | 8x points on fares | 10x points on fares |
| 12x points on extras* | 16x points on extras* | 20x points on extras* |
*Known as À La Smarte options, extras include spending on bags, seats and more. For more information on earning points, click here.
Here are some other ways to earn Free Spirit points:
Earn Free Spirit miles with the following hotel partners:
Choice Hotels. 250 miles for each stay in the United States, Caribbean, Mexico, Canada, Europe and Australia.
PointsHound. Up to 6,000 miles per night at over 150,000 hotels worldwide.
Rental car partners:
Avis. 500 miles on rentals of 3+ days and save up to 35%.
Budget. 300 miles on rentals of 4+ days and save up to 35%.
Hertz. Up to 500 miles per rental.
Payless. Earn 50 miles per rental day and save 5% on rentals in the United States and Canada.
Everyday partners:
Free Spirit Dining. 1,000 miles when you spend $30 within your first 30 days. Up to 5x miles at more than 10,000 restaurants, bars and clubs.
Free Spirit Online Mall. 1,000 miles for your first online purchase.
Spirit Cruises. Up to 10,000 miles per cruise.
Miles for Thoughts. 400 miles when you sign up and complete your first survey. Get additional miles for every survey you complete.
MyPoints. 250 miles after 30 days of membership. Get another 500 miles when you make your first qualifying purchase in the first 30 days.
Swagbucks. Up to 750 miles, plus free gift cards, for your online activities.
Ticket Club. Free membership, plus $10 off your first purchase.
Vinesse Wine Club. 5,000 miles and 6 wines for $6.99 per bottle.
Spirit Airlines offers two personal credit cards that can help you earn rewards and miles for your purchases. They are both issued by Bank of America and using a cobranded card can help you earn free points.
Free Spirit Travel Mastercard
| Welcome Bonus | 10k points $500 spend in your first 90 days |
| Ongoing rewards | 3x points on Spirit purchases 1x points on everything else |
| Anniversary Bonus | 5,000 points $10k spend the previous year |
| Additional Spirit Benefits | Points pooling 25% inflight rebate Zone 2 shortcut boarding Points do not expire |
| Other Notable Benefits | No foreign transaction fees |
| Annual Fee | $0 |
Free Spirit Travel More World Elite Mastercard
| Welcome Bonus | 40k points + $100 Companion Flight Voucher $1k spend in your first 90 days |
| Ongoing rewards | 3x points on Spirit purchases 2x points on dining & groceries 1x points on everything else |
| Anniversary Bonus | $100 Companion Flight Voucher $5k spend the previous year |
| Additional Spirit Benefits | Points pooling 25% inflight rebate Zone 2 shortcut boarding Points do not expire 1 SQP for every $10 charged to card Waived redemption fees |
| Other Notable Benefits | No foreign transaction fees Free monthly FICO Score |
| Annual Fee | $79, waived 1st year |
You will be able to purchase points at $0.025 per point. Because we value that each Free Spirit point at an average of $0.005 each, we strongly advise against buying points.
Redeeming Free Spirit Points
Award tickets can start as low as 2,500 Free Spirit points. Here is a table explaining the redemption fees.
| Flights booked at least 28 days in advance | No redemption fee |
| Flights booked less than 28 days in advance | $50 redemption fee |
| Free Spirit Credit Cardholder | No redemption fee |
| Free Spirit Silver/Gold Member | No redemption fee |
Just like Southwest Airlines and JetBlue, Spirit does not belong to any airline alliance. This means you won’t have the ability to book award flights with any partner airlines.
Starting March 2021, you can fly sooner by combining as little as 1,000 points with cash.
Mags For Miles. Use your Free Spirit miles for magazine and newspaper subscriptions. Rates vary.
Free Spirit Tips & Tricks
We have compiled some tips and tricks to help you earn bonus rewards and maximize your Free Spirit points:
Spirit Airlines sends daily emails with limited-time promotional codes for flight discounts. Don’t miss out on these by signing up for the mailing list.
Aside from the Free Spirit frequent flyer program, members of the Spirit Saver$ Club and u pto eight travel companions on the reservation have access to:
- Discounted fares
- Up to 50% off checked and carry-on bags
- Discounts on seat assignments, including Big Front Seats
- Discounts on additional perks, like Shortcut Boarding and Flight Flex
Membership costs $69.96 for 12 months, $99 for 18 months, or $129.90 for 24 months.
Here are some tips to keep your costs down when you fly with Spirit Airlines:
- Pay for your baggage fees when you book your ticket. Don’t wait to pay for them at the airport when they’re the most expensive.
- Print your boarding pass at home, at the airport kiosk or use a mobile boarding pass from the Spirit Airlines app. Printing the pass at check-in will set you back $10 per person.
- If you’re not picky about your seat, don’t pay for a seat assignment. Spirit Airlines does have a reputation of splitting up families. So if you want to sit together, fork over $12 each for advance seat assignments.
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Bottom Line
We have gone in depth about everything you need to know about Free Spirit. To summarize, the Free Spirit is best suited for budget travelers especially with the newly rebranded Spirit Saver$ Club.
However if you realize that this is not the reward program for you, feel free to check out our latest list of the best credit card bonuses.
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